New Hope sophomore pitcher D.J. Sanders was really proud that no opposing batters got hit Tuesday night.
Actually, Columbus got no hits and did not get hit, either one. However, it was more of the latter than had Sanders happy in the postgame.
“I had really good control tonight,” Sanders said with a wry grin. “Normally, I hit one, two or three batters in each game. I am kind of happy that I threw the ball where I wanted to tonight.”
Sanders did just that, as she threw a no-hitter in the Lady Trojans’ 5-1 victory at Lady Trojan Field.
“I was really glad to see D.J. pitch that way,” New Hope coach Tabitha Beard said. “She had a rough weekend. She really responded and pitched well.”
The praise for the remainder of the squad was slow in coming. New Hope scored four first-inning runs and then went on hiatus, turning everything over to Sanders.
“We started off well and then I think we took things for granted,” New Hope juinor Lauren Holifield said. “We didn’t finish nearly the way we started. We had four runs in the first inning and then we didn’t care after that, because we thought we already had it won.”
For New Hope(9-3-1), the paramount problem has been consistency. Beard thought her squad may be turning the corner after 7-1 and 11-1 wins over East Webster and Mooreville ov er the weekend.
“We have a bad habit of playing to our level of competition and taking things for granted,” Beard said. “We take teams lightly and I think that is what happened tonight.
“We came off a good weekend where we hit the ball well and I thought it was going to carry over but it just didn’t. The best we hit all year was the Mooreville game and that was throughout the lineup.”
On this night, the offensive woes were offset by Sanders. She faced one batter past the minimum while allowing three total base runners.
Columbus reached two batters via walk and another on a throwing error when a ball hit a runner going down the first base line. Of those three base runners, one scored on a wild pitch, while the others were caught stealing.
“A lot of my pitchers were working the way they were supposed to tonight and that allowed me to do more things,” Sanders said.
New Hope had four runs on four hits in the first inning. Anna McCrary had an RBI-single, while Kaitlin Oswalt drove home two with a single.
“The runs early were nice because that gives you a little leeway,” Sanders said. “It gives you more confidence because you know if you mess up and they score, you still have a great chance to win the game.”
Sanders struck out 14 and retired the first 13 batters she faced. The shutout was lost in the sixth inning.
An improved pitching performance and shaky hitting continues a baffling trend by the New Hope squad.
“Consistency is our big problem,” Sanders said. “Early, we were struggling with hitting. Then we weren’t struggling with hitting. Now, we are doing spot hitting. We just aren’t hitting it together well as a team.
“When we aren’t hitting, it puts more pressure on the pitcher. I feel like I have to do more. Because let’s say your team gets two runs, well then you know you pretty much have to shut the other team out.
“We have been stuck in the second round of the playoffs the last couple of years. We want to do better than that. But to do better than that, we will have to play a lot better and become more consistent.”
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
You can help your community
Quality, in-depth journalism is essential to a healthy community. The Dispatch brings you the most complete reporting and insightful commentary in the Golden Triangle, but we need your help to continue our efforts. In the past week, our reporters have posted 37 articles to cdispatch.com. Please consider subscribing to our website for only $2.30 per week to help support local journalism and our community.